Presettable slitter-scorer apparatus

ABSTRACT

A SLITTER-SCORER MACHINE USED IN THE PRODUCTION OF CORRUGATED PAPERBOARD HAVING MEANS FOR PRESETTING OF SET OF SLITTING HEADS AND SCORING HEADS DURING OPERATION OF ANOTHER SET OF SUCH HEADS COMPRISING TWO SETS OF SHAFTS UPON WHICH THE HEADS ARE MOUNTED WITH THE SHAFTS SECURED BETWEEN A PAIR OF CIRCULAR SIDE FRAMES TO FORM A SPOOL ARRANGED FOR ROTATION ABOUT A CENTRAL TRUNNION SO THAT WITH THE SPOOL IN ONE CIRCUMFERENTIAL POSITION ONE SET OF SHAFTS WITH THE HEADS THEREON ARE IN POSITION FOR ACTING UPON AN ADVANCING WEB OF PERBOARD WHILE THE OTHER SHAFTS ARE IN AN INACTIVE POSITION WITH A SET OF YOKES BEING PROVIDED TO ENGAGE THE INACTIVE HEADS AND MOVE THEM TO PRESELECTED LATERAL POSITIONS ACROSS THE WIDTH OF THE MACHINE SO THAT UPON COMPLETION OF THE ORDER BEING PROCESSED, THE SPOOL MAY BE ROTATED TO BRING THE PRESET HEADS INTO ENGAGEMENT WITH THE WEB TO PRODUCE A SUCCEEDING ORDER.

United States Patent 72] Inventors Warren A. Stewart Monkton; Richard ,I. Bridges, Baltimore, Md. 21] Appl. No. 815,311 [22] Filed Apr. 11, 1969 [45] Patented June 28, 1971 [73 Assignee Koppers Company, Inc.

[54] PRESETTABLE SLl'ITER-SCORER APPARATUS 17 Claims, 29 Drawing Figs.

52 U.S.Cl. 83/56, 83/479, 83/481, 83/499, 83/551, 83/552, 93/582 511 1111.01 ..B23d 19/06, B26dl/24 so FieldoiSear-ch 83/498,

PARK SINGLE-ML MAXIM/1M WEE WIDTH 3,173,325 /l965 Warren et al. 83/499 3,257,882 H966 Lulie et al 83/9 Primary Examiner-Andrew R. Juhasz Assistant Examiner-James F. Coan Artorneys- Boyce C. Dent, Oscar B. Brumback and Olin E,

Williams ABSTRACT: A slitter-scorer machine used in the production of corrugated paperboard having means for presetting one set of slitting heads and scoring heads during operation of another set of such heads comprising two sets of shafts upon which the heads are mounted with the shafts secured between a pair of circular side frames to form a spool arranged for rotation about a central trunnion so that with the spool in one circumferential position one set of shafts with the heads thereon are in position for acting upon an advancing web of paperboard while the other shafts are in an inactive position with a set of yokes being provided to engage the inactive heads and move them to preselected lateral positions across the width of the machine so that upon completion of the order being processed, the spool may be rotated to bring the preset heads into engagement with the web to produce a succeeding order.

HEA 0 PARK/N6- SINGLE WALL 557'!!! SINGLE WALL YUKE PATH Jim PATENTEU JUN28 I971 SHEET 02 OF INVENTORS WARREN ,4. 575mm? BY flaw/12.01. 82/0658 PATENTEI] JUH28 197i FIG. 27

OUTPUT INVENTORY WARREN A. S EM/4R7! BY A2,. 4424/ VIM/MK 0/2 /msE-fiw/r/ v5 DEMODULATOR 62 //5 VAC 5TOP. L P62 7 MAM/DRIVE START OPEN L P24 I u/vmck P27 A.

' HYDRAULIC PUMP SH/IFTS MOVE RIM/r P22 1% Q a 4 q E m 3 PUSHEPS '-u I: E $5, a H

'QL E. L 5. 2, -POWEP FROM POWER SUPPLY d TURN SWITCHES ac, POWER 5 *0 m 3, $191 w u :7? i 3 51 g 3 )3 YOKE I i E & b g 0 2 Powwow/v0 g mew. FED- a 5; Q g N BACK Q s E 9 P0 TEN Tl 0/175 TE}? FEEDBACK 0 5mm srop L M g/ YOKE POWER INVENTORS WARREN ,4. shew/9W1 FIG. 29 BY fla/wlbf PRESETTABLE SUTTER-SCORER APPARATUS BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention This invention relates generally to cutting and more particularly to cutting other than completely through the work such as by plural rotary scoring with typical cutting.

2. Description of the Prior Art In the processing of sheet material, especially an endless web of corrugated paperboard, it is highly desirable to form the web as wide as possible and then slit the web into narrower strips. Score lines are also usually made in each strip of corrugated paperboard at about the same time as the web is slit into preselected widths. The web-forming apparatus is operated on a continuous basis and the operation is interrupted only at such times as the slitting and scoring apparatus is adjusted to change the widths and lengths of the web material for the production of carton blanks of preselected size. It is now possible to make rapid adjustments in the apparatus for cutting the continuous web into lengths of preselected dimension. With the presently known slitting and scoring apparatus, however, a substantial amount of time is required to adjust the apparatus for changing the widths of the strips cut from the web of corrugated paperboard and the score lines impressed on the respective strips. It is, therefore, highly desirable to provide apparatus for slitting and scoring the continuously moving web of corrugated paperboard that may be rapidly adjusted to change the widths of the strips cut or slit in a continuously moving web. Apparatus which reduces the adjustment time minimizes the amount of waste incurred in the corru gated paperboard manufacturing. Where a substantial period of time is required to make the adjustment, portions of the continuous web are subject to burning in adjacent equipment.

Slitting and scoring of a continuously moving web has been accomplished by a slitter-scorer device that includes three separate sets of shafts supported by spaced-apart side frames. The shafts have slitting and scoring heads mounted thereon. While the heads of one of the shafts are slitting or scoring the moving web, the operator manually adjusts the heads on the other two sets of inactive shafts to the desired transverse dimension or spacing for subsequent slitting of the web into different-sized strips. This manual adjustment of the slitterscore heads is both time consuming and difficult to perform.

The setup time is excessive for the positioning or adjusting of the heads on the two sets of inactive shafts that are not slitting or scoring the continuously moving web. With short orders, that is, where only a short length of the continuous web is slit and scored into the preselected width, the operator does not have sufficient time to accurately adjust and set up the slitting and scoring heads on the inactive shafts for the next differently sized order. Interruption in the continuous process is usually required until the operator correctly adjusts the slitter-scorer heads on the inactive shafts.

A system for positioning the various slitting and scoring heads automatically during order changes was proposed by Lulie and Stewart as shown in US. Pat. No. 3,257,882. Their system encompasses several advantages over older methods but is still limited by the amount of time available from the time the web is transversely severed just prior to passing through the slitter-scorer apparatus and the time a new web is presented, such time being measured in seconds. Increasing demands are being made to reduce the time required to change over from an order of one size to another order of a different size. For example, it is now desirable to be able to change the positions of the various heads in the slitter-scorer in less than seconds. Such demands are difficult to meet even by the system of Lulie and Stewart referred to above.

SUMMARY Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a slitter-scorer machine capable of being preset, to provide slitting and scoring heads in the desired position for engagement with a corrugated paperboard web, within the time available for changing from one order to the next. This and other objects and novel features are accomplished by providing dual sets of shafts arranged in tandem upon which are mounted the various slitting and scoring heads so arranged that one set of heads is positioned for active engagement with the web while the remaining set is being preset to new lateral locations while out of active engagement with the web. Thus, the time required to present a correctly positioned set of heads for engagement with the web is only the time required to move one set of heads out of engagement while simultaneously moving the preset heads into engagement, for example, 2-3 seconds. The time available for repositioning the heads that are out of engagement in an inactive position is usually at least 5 minutes, which time is ample.

The preferred construction embraces a construction wherein the sets of shafts are arranged in a circle about an axis extending transversely across the line of web travel. By rotat ing the shaft sets about this axis, one set of shafts can be brought into an active position as the other set is removed to an inactive position. The heads on the inactive shafts are each engaged by a yoke which is then moved across the machine to a preselected location by a suitable control means provided for this purpose; thereafter the yokes are disengaged from the heads and returned to a parked position beyond the path of web travel in readiness for engaging the other set of heads when they are moved to the inactive position for positioning or setup.

Each set of shafts includes four shafts; two above the horizontally traveling web and two below. The heads mounted on the upper shafts cooperate with the heads mounted on the lower shafts to slit and score the web. One pair of the set of four shafts supports the scoring head-s, preferably the pair nearest the approaching web, while the second pair supports the slitting heads. All of the heads could be mounted to one pair of shafts but, for reasons well known in the art, it is preferable that the circumferential velocity of the slitting heads be slightly faster than the line velocity of the web while the circumferential velocity of the scoring heads is about equal to web velocity.

Provision is also made for presetting an auxiliary set of slitting and scoring heads used for operating upon a web of about double the ordinary thickness as will be later explained; the ordinary thickness web being hereinafter referred to as single-wall" and the double thickness web being referred to as double wall."

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The above and further objects and novel features of the invention will appear more fully from the following detailed description when the same is read in connection with the accompanying drawings. It is to be expressly understood, however, that the drawings are not intended as a definition of the invention but are for the purpose of illustration only.

In the drawings wherein like parts are marked alike:

FIG. 1 is a side elevation of the slitter-scorer in cross section illustrating the position of pairs of active and inactive slitting and scoring shafts and the position of an upper yoke assembly when engaged with heads on the shafts and the position of a lower yoke assembly when disengaged from the heads;

FIG. 2 is a front view of the slitter-scorer in which the lefthand side shown externally to illustrate the action of the active shafts upon the web while the right-hand. side is shown in cross section to illustrate the inactive shafts in position for engagement of yokes with the heads;

FIG. 3 is a schematic illustration of the sequence generally followed in positioning the heads by the yokes;

FIG. 4 is a schematic illustration of an end view of the power train showing the drive path for the active shafts;

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the power train taken along the line V-V of FIG. 4i;

FIG. 6 is a side elevation of the drive input side of the slitterscorer (see right-hand side of FIG. 2) illustrating the power input to the power train of FIGS. 4 and 5 and a power input for opening and closing the yoke assemblies;

FIG. 7 is a side view in cross section of one pair of inactive shafts illustrating a pusher used to move the heads to a park position at the side of the slitter-scorer;

FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line VIII-VIII of FIG. 7;

FIG. 9 is a side view in cross section of one pair of shafts in the inactive position illustrating a yoke assembly used to position the heads along the shafts;

FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line XX of FIG. 9;

FIG. II is a cross-sectional view taken along the line XI-XI of FIG. 9;

FIG. 12 is a schematic illustration of an end view of the right-hand power train for lateral movement of the yokes;

FIG. 13 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line XIII-XIII of FIG. 12;

FIG. 14 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line XIV-XIV of FIG. I2;

FIG. 15 is a schematic illustration of an end view of the lefthand power train for lateral movement of the yokes;

FIG. I6 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line XVI-XVI of FIG. l5;

FIG. I7 is a schematic illustration of an end view of a power train for operating the pusher of FIG. 7;

FIG. I3 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line XVIII-XVIII of FIG. 17;

FIG. 19 is a chart setting forth the sequence of functions performed in setting up the machine under three separate operating conditions;

FIG. 20 is a block diagram of an analog servosystem for automatically positioning the slitting and scoring heads in response to lateral dimensions entered into a plurality of operating dials;

FIG. 21 is a schematic diagram of a Kelvin-Varley bridge modified to include three potentiometers for readout";

FIG. 22 is a schematic diagram of an electronic switching circuit for switching the positioning system from the coarse error signal to the fine" error signal;

FIG. 23 is a schematic diagram ofa mechanical chopper circuit for treating the composite signal from the coarse-fine circuit of FIG. 22;

FIG. 24 is a schematic diagram of a band-pass filter for treating the signal from the chopper of FIG. 23;

FIG. 25 is a schematic diagram of a preamplifier for amplifying the error signal from the band-pass filter of FIG. 24;

FIG. 26 is a schematic diagram of a class AB driver for treating the signal from the preamplifier of FIG. 25;

FIG. 27 is a schematic diagram of a phase-sensitive demodulator for detecting the polarity of the signal from the AB driver of FIG. 26;

FIG. 28 is a schematic diagram ofa power amplifier for amplifying the signal from the demodulator of FIG. 27 and supplying a signal to clutches used to drive the head positioning yokes; and

FIG. 29 is a schematic diagram of the pushbutton controls used for dialing in positions for the heads and operating the machine.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT General As best illustrated in FIGS. I and 2, the slitter-scorer of the present invention includes a spool assembly I0 that is trunnion mounted between a pair of frame assemblies llZL, 22R that are adapted for lateral movement upon bases ML, MR. The spool 10 includes four pairs of shafts 16 (A, B, C, and D) mounted for rotation between subframe assemblies I8IL, 18R of which shaft pairs 16A and 16B are shown in the active position in engagement with web 20 and pairs 36C and MD are shown in the inactive position for setup.

The pairs of shafts 16A and 16D are each provided with cooperating upper and lower slitting heads 22 (double-wall heads denoted 22-D) for dividing web 20 into two or more strips moving side by side in the known manner. The pairs of shafts 16B and 16C are provided with cooperating upper and lower scoring heads 24(double-wall heads denoted 24-D) for longitudinally scoring the web prior to its division into strips by the slitting heads.

The slitting and scoring heads 22, 24 referred to herein are conventional other than being modified for engagement with yokes to be subsequently described. It should be understood that heads of other types may be used equally well with the present invention when modified in accordance therewith.

Yoke assemblies 26U and 26L are provided for laterally positioning the heads 22, 24 across the shafts 16 that are in the inactive or setup position. The upper yoke assembly 26U located above web 20 includes a yoke 28 for each pair of cooperating heads 22 or 24. Means are provided for raising (opening) the yoke assembly during rotation (indexing) of spool 10 so that the pairs of heads being brought into setup position will clear the yokes 28. Thereafter the assembly is lowered (closed) to bring the yokes 28 into engagement with the heads. A threaded rod 30 passes through each of the yokes 28 and is operatively connected thereto to move each yoke a predetermined distance across the pairs of shafts 16 thereby moving the associated heads to the desired location. A pusher plate 32 surrounds each pair of shafts I6 and is slidably driven across the shafts to move all the heads 22, 24 into a park position beyond the edge of the web 20. The yokes 28 engage the heads in their park positions for subsequent positioning across the shafts; after such positioning, the yokes are returned to the park position.

Stops 34, illustrated schematically in FIG. 3, are provided to limit the travel of the heads 22, 24 and yokes 28 to an extreme lateral or zero parked position. Thus, alignment of the yokes with the heads is assured. Once the heads have been moved to their operative position on the shafts, they are locked in place by hydraulically expanding the shafts into frictional engagement with the inner bores of the heads as will be subsequently explained.

The auxiliary or double-wall heads are stored (parked) on the opposite side of the machine from the single-wall heads as shown schematically in FIG. 3. An operator can select and automatically position either the single or double-wall heads which is of great value since, in conventional machines, it is necessary to first completely dismount the single-wall heads from the shafts and thereafter mount the double-wall heads on the shafts.

The lower yoke assembly 26L below web 20 operates the same as described above for upper yoke assembly 26U.

Operation Suitable controls, to be subsequently described, are provided to enable an operator to perform the various functions required to set up the machine by actuating the control switches provided.

For a better understanding of the machine, FIG. 19 is provided to set forth the sequence of functions performed in setting up the machine under three separate operating conditions. When read in conjunction with the schematic illustration of FIG. 3, the setup functions become quite evident. The double-decker mentioned in the chart of FIG. 19 is not shown in the drawings but is conventional as is the manner in which the web is cut prior to indexing the spool 10. The web 20 is usually decelerated and cut laterally on the fly; the web ahead of the cut continues at full speed so that a gap is opened up between it and the web behind the cut. As the fast-traveling web clears the slitter-scorer, the spool 10 is indexed to place the preset heads in position for operating upon the slow-moving advancing web which is then accelerated after indexing has occurred.

If preferred, the web may be completely stopped and cut and the forward portion drawn out of the slitter-scorer before indexing.

Detailed Construction For clarity, a detailed construction will be described for each of the machine assemblies and parts previously generally described.

Spool Assembly As best illustrated in FIGS. 1, 2, 5, and I8, spool assembly 10 includes a pair of spaced subframe assemblies lltiL, 18R between which four pairs of shafts to are mounted for driven rotation. Subframes 18L, 18R are connected by four spacer bars 36 to form a rigid spool structure lb. Spacer bars 36 preferably include reduced diameter end portions 37 which pass through subframes 18L, 18R (See FIG. 18) and are secured by a threaded screw 38 passing through a retaining washer 39 and into the bar.

The four pairs of shafts 16 are located circumferentially within the perimeter of subframes 18L, 118R as best illustrated in FIG. II. The pairs of shafts ildA, 16B are aligned diametrically opposite the center of subframes 181., MR to define a path of travel for web 20. Obviously, when spool 10 is rotated (indexed) 90, the pairs of shafts MC, MD define the path of travel of web 29. The individual shafts of the pairs are spaced from each other the correct distance to permit coaction between the heads 22, 24lfor operation on the web as well understood by those skilled in the art.

Referring now to FIG. 5, each of the shafts I6 is made from a tube M with journals 42 secured in each end thereof by threaded screws 44. The shafts are journaled for rotation in suitable bearings as contained within bearing housings 48 and 50 which are retained in subframes ML, ME by retaining rings 52. Conventional shaft seals 54 are used between the journals 42 and bearing housings 48, St) to permit the use of lubricant within the subframes ISL, lldR.

Each pair of shafts 16 is provided with intermeshing spur tooth gears 56 mounted for rotation with journals 452 and held in place by collars 58 fastened to the journals by screws 60. A gear motor 62 is provided for driving shafts l6 and is mounted to side frame 12R by screws 64. Gear motor 62 includes an output shaft ss on which a spur gear 68 is mounted for rotation. If desired, gear 68 may be connected through appropriate gear boxes (not shown) to a line shaft which is usually provided alongside the double-backer. This system assures that the slitter-scorer will track the speed of the doublebacker whereas gear motor 62 must have conventional adequate controls to make it track double-backer speed. Gear 68 is held in place by a washer 7t} and screw 72. An idler gear 74 is mounted for rotation by a bearing 76 about a mounting stud 78 secured in side frame li2R by a screw hill. Gear 74 is held in place by a washer 32 and screw M. Idler gear 74 is located to place gear 68 and one of the gears 56 in driving relation.

The drive path provided by the power train just described is illustrated schematically in FIG. 4. The motor output drive gear 68 is located along the axis of rotation 69 of spool it Idler gears 74, of which two are provided, being mounted to side frame 12R, remain stationary; However, gears 5t), being mounted to shafts 16, move with spool It) when it is indexed along the path from point A to point B. Accordingly, it can be seen that only the shafts 16 in the active position for operation on web 26 are driven by output gear 68 through idler gears 74. Gears 56 on the shafts H6 in the setup position are out of mesh with idlers 74 so that these shafts do not rotate during setup. When spool it) is indexed, the gears 56 that are in mesh with idler gears 74 go out of mesh and the gears 56 on the remaining shafts 116 go into mesh to drive the shafts I6 in the active position.

As previously mentioned, it is desirable that the circumferential velocity of the slitting heads 22 be greater than the circumferential velocity of the scoring heads which is about equal to the lineal velocity of web 20. Faster rotation of slitting heads 22 is achieved by a smaller reduction gear ratio between the output gear 63 and the gears 56 mounted to the shafts MA, I61) carrying the slitting heads 22. That is, these gears have fewer spur gear teeth than the gears 56 mounted on shafts 16B, 16C. The choice of gear ratios to provide the velocities desired is well understood by those skilled in the art.

The heads 22, 24 are conventional except for modifications to fit yokes 23 as will be subsequently described. Such heads are usually made as a single unit and then split diametrically to form two identical halves which are placed around shafts l6 and then bolted together to form a complete head. The heads 22, 24 of the present invention are made in like manner and are provided with a bore large enough to permit the heads to freely slide along the shafts 16 and small enough to prevent undesirable wobbling.

The heads 22, 24 are locked in position along the shafts 16 by hydraulically expanding the shafts so that the expanded shaft frictionally engages the bore of the heads. This system is shown and described in a patent application Ser. No. 360,389, filed Apr. 16, I964 by Warren A. Stewart and entitled Fluid Pressure Operated I-Iub to Shaft Locking Means, now abandoned.

Briefly, the means for hydraulically locking the heads 22, 24 along shafts 16 includes making the clearance between the shaft and the bore of the heads such that frictional engagement occurs when the shaft is expanded by hydraulic pressure. Thus, the shafts must be hollow to form a reservoir for hydraulic fluid supplied under pressure from a suitable source by a conventional rotary union secured to the journal of the shaft. The thickness of the wall of the shaft is selected to permit a few thousandths of an inch diametral expansion without exceeding the elastic limit of the shaft material. Operation of the hydraulic locking arrangement is clearly illustrated in FIG. 5.

Use of the foregoing locking arrangement is not essential. Other locking arrangements may be used such as, for example, the expandable key arrangement disclosed in Nitchie US. Pat. No. 2,989,328 issued June 20, 1961.

In the present invention, conventional rotary shaft unions M- are secured to the ends of shafts 16, see FIG. 5. Hoses b6 connect unions 84 to a source of fluid hydraulic pressure (not shown). The hollow interior of shafts I6 is filled with hydraulic fluid in fluid communication with the fluid supply. When hydraulic pressure is exerted by the supply, pressure of the fluid in the shafts 16 causes them to expand into frictional engagement with heads 22., 24 thereby locking them to the shafts. Conversely, when the hydraulic pressure is reiieved, the shafts to contract thereby unlocking the heads 22, 24.

Referring now to FIG. I, a raise and lower adjusting shaft S8 is provided for adjusting the tangential spacing between the cooperating heads 22, 24 on the pairs of shafts 16. Such adjustment is desirable to space the heads closer together or farther apart to compensate for the different thicknesses of web that may be passed between the heads. Such adjustments are conventional.

The adjusting shaft 88 extends through both subframes 18L, IISR as shown in FIGS. 5 and 18. A spur tooth gear 90 is secured to each end of shaft 38 so as to be in mesh with similar teeth 92 provided on bearing housings 50. The centerline of the bore in housings 50 for journaling shafts I6 is made eccentric with respect to the centerline around which teeth 92 are formed. Thus, as housing 50 is rotated, shaft to moves closer to or farther away from the other shaft of the pair. Since adjusting shaft 88 extends between the bearing housings 59 on opposite sides of the machine, rotation of shaft 88 will simultaneously rotate housings 5t? to assure circumferential alignment; this results in parallel alignment of the two shafts 16 of the pair.

To provide for rotation of shaft 88, it extends through the outer wall 94 of subframe 18L, see FIG. 18. A reduced end portion 96 is provided with screw threads 98 for engagement with threaded nut MN). When nut 100 is tightened against wall 94, the shaft 88 is locked against rotation to prevent rotation that might occur from vibrations when the machine is running.

Since there is relative movement between subframe 18L and main frame 12L during indexing, shaft 88 cannot extend through the latter frame. A wrench W2 is provided which has one end 104 adapted to engage a square or hexagonal portion i106 formed on the end of shaft 33 for rotating the shaft. The other end we of the wrench M32 is adapted to engage the nut we for loosening and tightening the nut. An opening Hit) is rovided in frame 12L to provide access to nut 100 and shaft 88.

The eccentric housings 50 and cooperating adjusting shafts 88 are provided for the upper shafts of the pairs of shafts 16 when the latter are in the operating position shown in FIG. 1. Thus, eccentric movement of upper shafts 16 does not affect the mesh of the gears 56 on the lower shafts with the idler gears 74 which drive the shafts from drive gear 68.

Again referring to FIG. 18, it will be noted that shaft 16 terminates just beyond bearing 46; this bearing is retained by a washer 112 secured to the end of the shaft by a threaded screw 1 14.

As shown in FIG. 1, spool 10 is indexed around central axis 69. This is accomplished by providing trunnions 116R and 116L on main frames 12R and 12L as best shown in FIGS. and 18. Cooperating journals 118R and 118L are provided on subframes 18R, 18L respectively of spool thus, the spool can rotate around trunnions l 16R, 116L.

A spur tooth gear 120 is mounted around trunnion 116R in a space provided between frame 12R and subframe 18R and is secured to journal 118R by a number of threaded screws 122. The corresponding space between the left side frame 12L and subframe 18L is filled with a spacer 124 likewise secured to subframe 18L by screws 122.

A spur tooth gear 126 is provided for driving gear 120 to index spool 10 around axis 69. Gear 126 is secured in the conventional manner to the output shaft 128 of a gear motor 130 which is in turn secured to main frame 12R by screws 132 (also see FIG. 6). Thus, when indexing is to be performed, a pushbutton switch is provided in the control circuit (to be subsequently described) for starting motor 130 in the desired direction to rotate spool 10 a distance of 90. The motor 130 may be controlled to turn the required number of revolutions. Preferably, a stop is provided (not shown) to limit the rotation of the spool.

To attain exact alignment of spool 10 in either of its A and B index positions, a tapered retractable pin 134 is provided for mating engagement with a tapered opening 136 in subframe 18R. Extension and retraction of pin 134 may be accomplished by an electric solenoid or hydraulic ram 133 secured to main frame 12R by screws 140. Thus, prior to indexing spool 10, ram 138 is energized to retract pin 134. After indexing, ram 138 is energized to extend pin 134. The tapered portions of pin 134 and opening 136 serve to align the spool relative to mainframe 12R and to lock the spool firmly in position.

It can be seen in FIGS. 5 and 18 that a number of openings 142, 144, 146, 148, 150, 152, and 154 are provided in the main and subframes to permit access to the interior of subframes 18L, 18R for assembly, inspection, and repair. Suitable covers, denoted by the opening number plus suffix c, are secured to the subframes to achieve an oiltight assembly so that the gear train therein can be oil lubricated. For clarity, illustration of these openings has been omitted from the other FIGS.

Frame Assemblies 12L, 12R

Frames 12L, 12R serve as supports for spool assembly 10, yoke assemblies 26U, 26L, and various motors and controls to be described. The spool is supported by the trunnion 116 and journal 118 arrangement previously described. Tie bars 156 (see FIGS. 1 and 2) are provided to space the frames 12L, 12R the proper distance apart and to establish a rigid unitary assembly. Bars 156 preferably include reduced diameter end portions 158 which pass through frames 12L, 12R and are secured by a threaded screw 160 passing through a retaining washer 162 and into the bar. This arrangement is illustrated for one of the bars in FIG. 2, the remaining bars being omitted for clarity.

As previously mentioned, yoke assemblies 26U and 26L are opened and closed to provide clearance between yokes 28 and heads 22, 24 during indexing of spool 10. The yoke assemblies are arranged to abut the main frames 12L, 12R in the closed position and to be spaced therefrom in the open position. FIG. I shows, for purposes of illustration, the upper yoke assembly 26U in the closed position and the lower yoke assembly 26L in the open position although it should be understood that opening and closing of the assemblies occurs simultaneously so that both assemblies are either open or closed at the same time.

The yoke assemblies each have a pair of vertical guide bars 164 secured thereto as shown in FIG. 12. The bars preferably include reduced diameter end portions 165 fitted within a thickened portion 166 of yoke assembly housing 168. Threaded screws 170 secure the guide bars 164 firmly to housing 168.

As seen in FIGS. 1 and 2, the vertical guide bars 164 on the upper and lower yoke assemblies 26U, 26L oppose each other in axial alignment. The bars extend through guide holes 172 provided in main frames 12L, 12R and into a hollowed out portion 174 formed in these frames. Within the hollow portion 174, a spur tooth gear 176 is provided along the axis of the bars 164 just below the path of travel of web 20. The gears 176, in the hollow portions 174 opposite sides of the machine, are connected for driven rotation by a drive rod 178 which is journaled in main frame flanges 180. The ends of guide bars 164 terminate in flat portions 182 on which are mounted conventional spur tooth racks 184 such as by threaded screws (not shown). The rack 184 on the upper bar 164 meshes with gear 176 on the outboard side of the gear and the rack 184 on the lower bar 164 meshes with the gear 176 on the inboard side of the gear. A top view in cross section appears in the lower portion of FIG. 5. Thus, as gears 176 are rotated counterclockwise, both upper and lower yoke assemblies 26U, 26L will be closed and, conversely, as gears 176 are rotated clockwise, the yoke assemblies will be opened.

Close examination of the foregoing arrangement as viewed in FIG. 1 will reveal the advantage of the arrangement. That is, the weight of the lower yoke assembly 26L is counterbalanced by the weight of the upper yoke assembly 26U. Thus, the driving force needed for opening and closing the yokes is small; just enough to overcome inertia and friction between the various parts.

The arrangement for driving yokes 26U, 26L into their open and closed positions is shown in FIGS. 5 and 6. Conventional worm gear boxes 186 are mounted to the outer face of frame 12R, such as by screws 187, so that a worm wheel 188 within the box can be secured to the end of each drive rod 178 in the usual manner. Each worm gear box includes a worm 190 meshing with the wheel 188 and a shaft extension 192 connected to worm 190 and extending beyond the box 186. A drive shaft 194 connects the shaft extensions 192 through conventional shaft couplings 196 as shown in FIG. 6. A drive motor 198 is connected to one of the worms 190 by a shaft extension 200. Thus, as motor 198 is energized to run in the proper direction, it rotates the worms 190 to open or close yokes 26U, 26L through the foregoing elements of the arrangement. It should be understood that other arrangements can be devised to accomplish the same purpose with equal effectiveness.

Machine Bases ML and 14R The assembly of the main frames 12L, 12R supporting spool 10 is supported on machine bases 14L, 14R for lateral movement with respect to the path of travel of web 20. Lateral movement is desirable because web 20 tends to weave from side to side during its forward travel. Therefore, in order to keep the heads 22, 24 operating in the proper position on the web, the slitter-scorer is controlled for lateral movement automatically in response to lateral shifting of the web. Many such automatic controls are available. For example, a satisfactory type is described in Nitchie et al. US. Pat. No. 3,260,142 issued July 12, 1966. No further description is believed necessary except to say that the hydraulic actuator 85" described by Nitchie et al. can be conveniently secured to one of the machine bases 14L, 14R with its output shaft attached to one of the main frames 12L, 12R for moving the assembly across the machine bases.

The means by which locomotion is achieved comprises four wheels 202 preferably bearing mounted for rotation about 

